Suizei Kusanagi
| image = | name = | kanji = クサナギ スイゼイ | romanji = Kusanagi Suizei | race = Visored | birthday = December 31 | age = 386 | gender = Male | height = 6'1'' | weight = 174lbs | eyes = Deep Red with flecks of Black | hair = Ink Black | blood type = A+ | unusual features = | affiliation = Lactor Finis | previous affiliation = Gotei 13 | occupation = Unknown | previous occupation = | team = Lactor Finis | previous team = First Division | partner = N/A | previous partner = Unknown | base of operations = World of the Living | marital status = Single | relatives = None | education = | status = Active | shikai = Tōgō | bankai = Kanpekina Tōgō}} Suizei Kusanagi is the ex-lieutenant of and one of few shinigami-hollow hybrids, known as the . Having approached Aizen himself to be hollowfied he is arguably the first Visored and one of few who weren't forcefully thrown into exile following due to his not being discovered. Despite his hollowfication going unnoticed, Suizei put himself into exile when he defected from the to pursue "higher power." Appearance Suizei is best described as devilishly attractive, possessing an attractiveness that is only enhanced by his impeccable no-nonsense attitude and personality. His ink-black hair, piercing deep red eyes, nearly perfectly symmetrical features, and a muscular body kept perfectly toned and held in the utmost of refined manners combine to create an appearance that is undeniably attractive overall. Standing at 6'1" his physical presence is hard to pass by as his stature only adds to his appeal, allowing him to be slightly taller than most. Even while standing a bit taller than most, this adds to his air of authority while allowing him to exist within the . In regards to his build Suizei is neither scarily muscular nor overly thin, maintaining a perfect balance between the two that only serves to enhance his appearance while complimenting his fighting-style by allowing him to easily out-maneuver his opponents while delivering strikes with both grace and power. He carries himself with such control and composure that not even the minutest of bodily gestures are present when he wishes to stand still, granting his motions such fluidity and grace that is most oft seen only in dancers as he "glides" through his surroundings with zero wasted energy. This sense of grace along with the pride and composure he caries himself with tends to hold those around him at rapt attention, causing them to subconsciously straighten and compose themselves in an effort to be "worthy" of his presence. Suizei carries himself with an air of absolute composure paired with unshakable confidence and is rarely, if ever, shaken by any events around him; he takes great pride in his appearance, believing that one must be kept impeccably composed at all times in order to display the proper control of one's self no matter the situation. This attitude is found in every action, from combat to walking, and while it takes great control of one's self to maintain it makes his very actions seem effortless. Personality Suizei holds control and self-composure at topics of the highest importance, as such he literally radiates an air of authority from his very person and is most oft seen in absolute control of both himself and his surroundings, due to this he has never been seen to smile nor grimace and his face remains carefully neutral in most situations, typically only displaying a slight annoyed scowl when others would display rage. Suizei's conversation is best described as terse and slightly hostile, speaking to others as if their very presence and lack of composure irks his nerves. When dealing with others, interactions are clipped at best as he tends to arouse feelings of nervousness and incompetence in those around him. When necessary or genuinely interested, the latter of which is extremely rare, Suizei has displayed near perfect social skills, drawing on the conversation and steadily showing his innate charm in such situations. Suizei is highly intelligent in every respect of the word, whether it be in regards to reading an opponent or composing intricate strategies, and as such his intelligence inevitably puts added pressure on an adversary. Never impulsive, Suizei draws on his intellect to rapidly plan out his actions before committing, oft making it seem as if he has everything planned out in advance. This is done in nearly every activity he participates in yet is nigh impossible to detect due to the speed at which he processes the information before making his decision, allowing him to catch adversaries by surprise with well-thought out decisions being formed within the span of time that it would take the average combatant to notice the assault. Equipment and Inventions During his stay in the Soul Society Suizei expressed genuine interest in the activities of the and as such is responsible for several inventions, having used his influence to ensure their development. Defensive Gigai: Suizei possesses a that is meant to be used purely for defensive purposes, serving as a second skin that will disintegrate once it has sustained notable damage. This disintegration effect acts as if the Shinigami in question had left the body via , emerging without any damage and knowledge of the opponent's abilities due to the opponent inevitably having to resort to more powerful techniques in order to destroy the body. While inside the Gigai, the user's is "watered-down", making powerful users seem as though a weaker individual lies within the Gigai and resulting in them maintaining the element of surprise in battle. Powers and Abilities Analytical Tactician: Suizei has shown himself to be extremely analytical in battle, capable of examining every aspect of an opponent and their techniques in the heat of battle. This allows him to quickly pick out the "tells" of an opponent's technique as well as familiarizing himself with their unique movements, allowing him to simply "read" the opponent to formulate the needed strategy to bring about his desired result. Manipulative Intelligence: Suizei is extremely intelligent yet it is the way that he applies this intelligence that sets him apart from others. Constantly using his mental capabilities to influence the actions of his opponents and those around him, "pulling the strings" in the background while he keeps them occupied with heated combat. In this respect, Suizei compares the vast majority of his opponents to puppets simply stating: "Every opponent I face is nothing more than a mere puppet, I am in control of every function, I pull every string. Is it safe to assume that you think otherwise? When I attack, you move to dodge. When I run, you quickly follow. When I elude your attempts at striking me, you attack again. You are nothing more than a mere puppet and a rather unresponsive one at that... Now, dance out your final moments before I sever your strings". Immense Spiritual Energy: Befitting the ex-lieutenant of the top ranking division of the Gotei 13 Suizei possesses enormous quantities of finely controlled spiritual power, allowing him to make himself seem as if he were a much weaker individual before allowing his power to skyrocket to monstrous levels. Due to his high levels of spiritual energy, Suizei inspires a mixture of fear and obedience in those around him; this is due to Suizei's Reiatsu weakening the willpower of those around him combined with the powerful air of authority that radiates from his very being. This is easily seen in effect when head-strong and brash seated officers suddenly quiet down and snap to attention when he draws near, occurring long before they are able to visually detect him even when his energy is suppressed to the level of an average seated officer. Master Swordsman: Suizei is easily classified as a master swordsman, having gained various "abilities" through a mixture of hard-work and constant training. Serving to only increase his deadliness with a blade, Suizei is ambidextrous and as such possesses the ability to quickly switch hands in order to slightly alter his method of offense and throwing off opponents in the process as they are forced to shift and adjust to the ever-changing assault. Preferring to make use of quick, sharp, and precise slashes and thrusts as opposed to unrefined "brutish" attacks; the amount of precision in his strikes forces his opponents to constantly adjust their guard to avoid feeling his blade bite into their flesh as he surgically picks through the weaknesses in their guard. *'Swordsman's Eye': This innate ability is one that is relatively simple in nature, but complicated in use. Swordsman's Eye allows any possessing this skill to accurately gauge the fighting ability of their opponent, not by Spiritual Energy but rather by body language and the subconscious signals one gives off from their body. This also allows those in possession of this skill the ability to somewhat predict the movements of their opponents moments before they occur by analyzing their bodies and familiarizing themselves with the motions of an opponent, in essence "reading" an opponent before they get the opportunity to actually enact their actions. These abilities do not stem from any use of Spiritual Energy nor are they a secret technique, they simply result from the immense amounts of experience that Suizei possesses in the field of Swordplay. That being said, these may be taught to others through rigorous training and instruction yet may not be copied as it is not truly an "ability" rather a process done subconsciously. *'Flawless Draw': This ability stems from absolute muscle control, reducing the amount of wasted energy that is output from one's actions. While the name would suggest that it refers specifically to drawing one's blade, this is in truth a skill that may be used in respect to any action. Unlike Swordsman's Eye and Blade Reading these actions aren't subconscious and may be turned "on and off" at the will of the user, allowing them to lead an opponent to believe they are merely average or possess the typical bladestyles before suddenly refining each of their motions to the point that there is nearly 0 wasted energy. Due to the reduction of the amount of energy being wasted, this results in both faster and more powerful strikes in addition to increasing one's stamina as they are using almost the exact amount of energy they wish to, allowing those who possess this skill to not only fight longer but also fight "smarter". *'Blade Reading': This skill is similar to Swordsman's Eye in that it is an entirely subconscious process resulting from immense amounts of experience in the field of swordplay but different in the respect that it requires solid knowledge of the processes involved in forging blades as well. Blade Reading grants the bearer the ability to "read" any blade they see, effectively and accurately determining parameters such as the reach of the blade, cutting potential, the detrimental strain that is placed on the user, the weight of the blade, weak points in the blade itself and even the disadvantages imposed upon the wielder of the blade by its form. As this process is subconscious it is constantly happening, allowing one to respond to physical changes in an opponent's blade as well as compensate for any abilities the blade may possess by factoring these in with the other parameters. This is arguably one of Suizei's most useful skills, allowing him to effectively defend against and/or destroy any blade he encounters. Enhanced Speed and Agility: Suizei is extremely fast and agile without the use of Hohō due to the absolute control he has over his body, allowing him to minimize wasted energy while using his athletic build to sprint past those in the area. This ability becomes invaluable when fighting at close quarters with an opponent, allowing him to rapidly cover any ground between them in an instant while maintaining the ability to doggedly pursue an opponent for extended periods of time without tiring due to not wasting energy. Enhanced Strength: Stemming from his ability to minimize the amount of energy wasted when performing actions of any type, Suizei has shown little difficulty when displaying feats of great strength; easily tossing aside opponents and large objects alike without hesitation or signs of strain. Despite his distaste for brute strength, Suizei holds no reservations to using his own strength; simply stating that his is "finely controlled and refined, unlike brutish force." Master Hakuda Practioner: Due to his finely controlled body, athletic build, natural speed and strength, along with his ability to read an opponent, Suizei is easily recognized as a Master of Hakuda. He has shown the ability to easily defeat both faster and physically stronger opponents by instantly adjusting his own style to attack the weaknesses an opponent possesses, displaying the ability to force opponents to constantly adjust while he alters his assault to pin point the flaws in their styles. In reference to his own style of combat Suizei prefers debilitating strikes, precisely striking crucial areas on an opponent and drastically reducing their ability to fight on; this style in itself results in Suizei being able to combat large numbers of opponents with ease by simply reducing the number able to move, yet alone fight. Expert in Kidō: While Suizei is only able to make use of Kidō into the sixties, it is his innovative uses that denotes Suizei as an expert in this field; easily combining Kidō to enhance the overall power behind his techniques or using them as the absolute opposite of what they were meant to be used for, such as erecting defensive spells within Hollows resulting in near instant destruction or reversing Healing Spells to cause serious damage to opponents in hand-to-hand combat. Hohō Master: His skill in this field allows him to easily outstrip most users of these techniques, covering large distances with the minimal number of steps and has displayed such skill as to be able to hold a conversation and outrun his words, effectively making it seem as though he were still in the same location; when used Suizei simply appears to simply "blink out", his presence completely disappearing before reappearing just as quickly at his destination. When combined with the absolute control Suizei holds over his body, his travel speed increases dramatically as he travels in the minimal number of steps while simultaneously reducing all wasted energy to nearly 0 allowing him to travel at speeds that will outclass even other Masters in the field, on par with only the fastest of opponents, and create vacuums in his wake. Suizei has shown the ability to reign in his speed, constantly altering the number of steps in order to prevent an opponent from gauging his travel time. *Setsudan Kyūkyoku (切断究極): A technique developed by Suizei designed to deliver a barrage of slashes that bears the appearance of being a single slash. Achieved by moving at nearly his top speed, almost always in a linear fashion, and delivering many flowing slashes with his blade using his Flawless Draw technique to minimize any wasted energy, giving an opponent enough time to detect only the final slash. The power behind these slashes are devastating due to the sheer speed at which they travel, drastically increasing both the impact damage and the cutting ability behind the blows. This technique is capable of being adjusted at will in the respect of altering the specific slash that an opponent is able to detect, allowing Suizei to let the first slash go detected in order to cause an oppoent to dodge into the next. Setsudan Kyūkyoku may also be used while stationary, Zanpakutō Tōgō (統合, "Integration") takes the appearance of a slightly elongated Katana that bears another, shorter blade on the opposite end when sealed. These blades may be detached and reattached at will, allowing Suizei to quickly flow into a two-handed offensive to overwhelm opponents. When detached the "main blade" is worn sheathed at his right hip while the shortened blade is worn on the small of his back, allowing him to quickly draw both blades simultaneously with minimal difficultly. The main sword is overall extremely elegant in its appearance: the blade itself appearing highly polished with nary a single nick, bearing a simple yet graceful four-sectioned circular guard with each section bearing a small depiction of an Ouroboros devouring its tail, the hilt itself bears a design similar to that of the Lemniscate with a single golden line piercing the exact middle of the symbol and repeating the design on the opposite side of the hilt yet in inverted color and design, meaning it appears that a golden Lemniscate lays above a black line. The secondary blade is exactly identical in appearance to the main blade, simply on a smaller scale. Both sheaths bear a design of a seemingly infinitesimal black hole with many points streaming into and out of the exact center yet both sheaths are the inverse of the other in terms of color, meaning the main sheath bears a black hole on white space while the secondary bears a white hole on black space. Suizei's control over Tōgō is near perfect as he has displayed the ability to use Shikai abilities while sealed and Bankai abilities in Shikai, albeit in a diluted and much weaker form. * : Tōgō's release command is "Finis..." (Latin: "The End..."). When in Shikai no notable change is made to the sword with the exception of the Ouroboros becoming more apparent in the guard. While in this state Suizei's fighting style goes through a minute yet effective change, twisting his wrist ever so slightly upon impact to force an opponent to adjust their defense or risk the blow rolling over their guard to bite into their flesh. :Shikai Special Ability: Tōgō enhances Suizei's performance by allowing him to gather sensory input within a 360° radius, making it nigh impossible to catch him off guard. Suizei equates this ability to the "Unification of all things", suggesting that these additional senses are not directly linked to his own. In truth Suizei taps into the "senses" of all things, using everything in the general area to feed him what they "see" and "hear"; while in some cases this is quite literal, as with animals and those who have actual senses, it is purely figurative in others, making use of "vectors" to detect an opponent and any sound generated in relation to objects in the area. The use of this technique gives Suizei immunity to any illusions which attack the senses while he is in Shikai as he uses a combination of vectors and the senses of others to "anchor" himself in reality, granting him the ability to gain the upperhand against those who make use of illusions as part of their main offense or defense. That being said this does not grant Suizei immunity to "natural" illusions which do not directly affect him, for example an opponent bending light to make it seem as if he or she disappeared or creating illusionary copies of themselves, however Suizei is able to easily detect an opponent while these illusionary techniques are being used by using vectors to place them in relation to other objects and robbing the illusion of its effectiveness. :*Intactilis: This technique grants Suizei the ability to become intangible by rearranging his "make-up" and that of his blade to behave like that of smoke. When this is in use there is no notable change until the moment of impact and the ensuing result depends on the nature of the opposing object that came into contact with his "body", in the case of blades they will simply pass through him and the section of his body which came in contact with the blade will be dragged out with it; for example if an opponent slashed at his midsection with this technique in use, the small section that their blade comes into contact with will be dragged along with the blade and "displaced". The shift from being tangible to intangible takes merely a moment's notice and does not have to be complete, allowing Suizei to shift a single part of his body for strategic applications. * : Kanpekina Tōgō (完璧な統合, "Flawless Integration"): This technique perfects his Shikai while granting him several additional abilities, revolving around "Integration". To activate his Bankai Suizei restates his Shikai release and completes the phrase "Finis Origine Pendet" (Latin: The End Depends on the Beginning). After activation his sword undergoes yet another change, the guard completely shattering before reforming as a golden Ouroboros with no physical connection to the blade, seemingly floating around it while slowly rotating. During Bankai Suizei gains the ability to "Integrate" himself or his blade into anything, whether it be physical, spiritual, or a memory once the object in question comes into contact with Tōgō's blade. :*'Physical or Spiritual': In the case of spiritual and physical objects direct contact with Tōgō's blade is unnecessary, contact through Suizei is enough to allow Integration. When used on a physical or spiritual object Suizei gains the ability to "phase", combining himself with the object in question, in and out of these objects to avoid harm and launch an offensive from within. This is not limited to tangible objects, as Suizei has displayed the ability to integrate himself into the very air and launch an invisible assault on an opponent. When used on a Zanpakutō the effect is notably different; upon contact with the blade the opponent will find it increasingly difficult to maintain contact with his Zanpakutō and as such makes it nigh impossible to achieve a release. In addition to this Suizei has shown the ability to integrate himself into their Zanpakutō, creating a hand that clamps down on that of the opponent to make it difficult to even wield the blade. If Suizei were to fully integrate himself into an individual with spiritual energy his own spiritual presence would become nigh undetectable and would appear only as an undertone to the presence of whoever he is within. :*'Memories': When used on memories Suizei is not limited to the memories of sentient beings, this may be used on objects such as clothing or the very ground one stands on, allowing Suizei to alter the memories in question. When used on sentient beings this allows Suizei to merely place himself within their memories and alter memories that relate specifically to him or those that he is present in, this is invaluable for the gathering of intel or even in combat to make it emotionally scaring for the opponent to raise their blade to harm him. These memories are indistinguishable from any others but can be potentially flawed, slight errors may be present in the memories that will allow the victim to detect the altered memory yet it becomes increasingly difficult to do so as the harder they attempt to pick apart the memory in question the "cloudier" their mind will become. When used on objects that are non-sentient he is able to alter the "memories" of the object, placing traps that weren't previously there, causing a weapon to rapidly rust and decay, or repairing damage by making the object "forget" it happened; the options are essentially unlimited when used on mere objects. When used on a grand scale Suizei is able to drastically alter the shape of the very terrain by changing the memories on how it was formed, creating Stalagmites in mere instant to impale opponents or landslides to bury everything in the area. :Bankai Special Ability: Suizei's Bankai grants him several additional techniques and special abilities. :*Rapid Regeneration: By altering the "memories" of the Suizei's body, Tōgō is able to quickly heal Suizei as if the injury never happened. That being said it will cost Suizei the memory of the attack ever occurring, hence he may be placed at an extreme disadvantage in relation to more powerful techniques that he would have been able to avoid had he remembered their original occurance. This technique is able to heal all but injuries that would result in instant death, yet each time the technique is used the duration of his Bankai is reduced. :*Tacita bifariam (Silence in Two): This technique in essence extends the reach of Suizei's blade, creating an invisible blade both to the front and rear of his sword while extending the actual thrusting range of the blade in the same manner. This makes avoiding any attack extremely difficult as there is both a primary and secondary slash in addition to the actual attack, the first allowing Suizei to open up his opponent's guard while the actual blade bites into the opponents flesh and the secondary increases the damage. Hollowfication Hollow Mask: Suizei's mask is best described as colorfully demonic as six slightly curved horns sprout from the forehead, one from each cheekbone, and one from both sides of the chin. Blood red tribal markings dance across the nose and forehead of the mask while acidic green markings of the same nature are seen on the lower half along with two rows of flat teeth with the exception of four devilishly sharp fangs on the upper row. The eyes are lined in a slightly lighter red, giving the black and yellow orbs an even more startling appearance. As with other masks Suizei's is incredibly durable, taking powerful attacks head on without any apparent damage and affecting the rest of his body in much of the same way. Suizei dons his mask either by thought or, more commonly, by acting as if he were drawing down a curtain attached to his hairline. Once activated Suizei has been shown to remain in this state for between 4 and 7 minutes at a time. Enhanced Strength: Suizei's natural strength is greatly enhanced while Suizei bears his mask, toppling large buildings and shattering the ground itself with apparent ease. Despite the increase in strength, Suizei's motions are as finely controlled as before thereby granting him an added degree of deadliness. Enhanced Speed: Every aspect of Suizei's speed skyrockets to the point of being able to outstrip lieutenant-level opponent's making use of Shunpo without resorting to the technique himself, this increase in speed is only further supplemented by the increase in physical strength as he is able to more powerfully propel himself during travel and the level of control he retains over his body. This extends to the velocity of any blows delivered to an opponent, making it nigh impossible to avoid his strikes at close range. Enhanced Spiritual Energy: Suizei receives notable changes to both the "feel/effect" of his Reiatsu and a dramatic increase in his spiritual energy. It is said that while in this form Suizei's spiritual energy feels similar to that of an while his Reiatsu induces strong feelings of panic in those around him, able to paralyze even those of the lieutenant level with such a high level of fear and panic that they no longer know how to respond. Even those who overcome the paralyzing effects of his Reiatsu tend to succumb to the effect that such high levels of fear have on their decision making, falling prey to their own brash actions. Limited Mask Regeneration: Suizei has demonstrated the ability to "feed" his mask spritual energy in the environment in order to reverse some damage to his mask, giving him the potential to avoid his mask being destroyed as it can be healed nearly as fast as it may be damaged. That being said, this ability requires that Suizei have access to a "start up time" of three to four seconds before the regeneration begins. There is no apparent motion linked to performing this. Personality Switch: It should be noted that when Suizei dons his Hollow mask, his ferocity increases tenfold and he will doggedly pursue his opponent. Despite this, he still maintains absolute control over his body as he barrages his opponents with assault after assault of fierce but precise offensives. : While Suizei's Cero bears the generic crimson coloration of a typical Cero and for all appearances seems to be a simple blast, he has in truth developed several different variations of the technique and has displayed the ability to fire a Cero from any location on his body. *Kyo Kamisori (虚剃刀, Hollow Razor): This technique is identical to a typical Cero, appearing crimson in coloration and having the same destructive radius, the only differences being that the blast is condensed to bear a tip similar to a razor's edge and that it contains an "inner Cero" that spins while the outer layer remains motionless, granting the attack piercing, grinding, and explosive damage upon contact. Due to the nature of this technique it is extremely precise and as such has a small blast radius, allowing the user the ability to pick out and strike a single target if they choose. Like his other Cero variations, this may be fired from any part of his body. *Cero Grande (Big Zero): A relatively simple technique that involves combining Ceros in order to achieve much greater devesatating effects. While the concept itself is simple, it is the manner in which it may be used that makes this an effective technique. By combining any of his own variations of Cero together or with regular Ceros of his own, Suizei is able to essentially "layer" their respective types or effects into one large Cero. This is the name given to any combination of Cero, no matter the size. *Dividido cero (Divided zero): A technique in which Suizei rapidly charges a large Cero in the palms of his hands before dividing each of these into smaller Ceros that migrate to his fingertips to be fired rapidly at an opponent. Due to the smaller size these are more precise and may be used to accurately strike specific locations on an opponent while traveling faster as opposed to a large cero hoping to affect the desired area. Due to the nature of this technique, these may be used in rapid succession by simultaneously firing them from the fingertips while constantly charging and dividing a cero. It should be noted that there are two variations to this technique, each identical in appearance yet with completely different methods of damage; one inflicts piercing damage while the other delivers the typical explosive force of a cero. *Extendía Cero (Stretched Zero): A technique that allows the firing of a curved Cero as opposed to the typical beam shaped Cero. This is achieved by forming the Cero in one's hand or on one's foot and swinging it in an arch while firing, forcing the blast to warp and retain a sickle shape. As the shape would suggest this variation does not explode on contact but rather delivers vicious slicing damage. Trivia *Suizei Kusanagi is the only one of Lactor Finis who's name isn't in Latin. Despite this, his name still holds a meaning that can be connected to his character. His first name Suizei is taken from the Legendary 2nd Emperor of Japan, Suizei-tennō. His last name is taken from one of three legendary Sacred Treasures of Japan, the Sword of Kusanagi which currently represents Valor. The combination of Suizei's legendary status and the Sword of Kusanagi combine to create a character with strict Emperor-like qualities, exemplified by the strict self-control Suizei Kusanagi holds over himself. *Suizei is born in December due to it being one of seven months with 31 days and his birth day representing the End of the End or Absolute End (The last day of the last month). The birth flowers of December are Holly and Poinsettia, both of which are slightly poisonous. The red color of Suizei's eyes can be found in the berries of the Holly and the petals of the Poinsettia. The birthstone of December is Turquoise, a stone that was used to "ward off unnatural death" in the Persian Empire. If the stones changed color it was said to mean impending doom for the wearer. *Suizei is a member of the group Lactor Finis, an organization/alliance composed of four powerful Shinigami. Lactor Finis is also latin and may be translated to mean "Bringer of the End", the group may be equated to the Four Horseman. *Suizei is symbolically the White Horse of the group, embodying military conquest. Category:Visored Category:Vizard Category:Former Lieutenants Category:Villains Category:1st Division Category:Male Category:Original Characters Category:Character Category:Original Character Category:Exiled Shinigami Category:Lactor Finis